Morality Versus Strategy in U.S. Tibet Policy

On Friday, a panel discussion in
Washington called on the U.S. government to stop treating the question
of Tibetan human and civil rights violations as a moral issue.

Instead, they urged the government to focus on Tibet as a strategic
issue, and one of central importance to the United States.

"Tibet has been turned into a moral issue and been pushed to the
sidelines," said Brahma Chellaney, an analyst at the Centre for Policy
Research in New Delhi. "We need to take it back to centre stage and
recognise that Tibet is tied to Asian and international security."

"We can't make progress if we treat Tibet as a moral rather than a
strategic issue," agreed Michael J. Green, an adviser at the Center
for Strategic and International Studies here in Washington.